“Crux” is an in-depth exploration of the past, present, and (possible) future of everyday life with the aim of personal awakening. It focuses on an idea that can account for the melding of seemingly incompatible musical worlds and theories with respect to the mechanisms of each one of them. It could easily be described as the absolute “crossover” album of Mechanimal, or simply the one where the ideas and obsessions of its members meet at the heart of the mechanical animal.
“Crux” is the Mechanimal manifesto. It consists of electronic music, spoken word, cut-up images and videos, deconstructed slogans, ideas and actions. A multidimensional collage inspired by the harsh reality, or otherwise the violent regularity that is “enforced” (by the new music industry to home entertainment and by “fake news” to climate change), and at the same time criticized.
Believing that everything is political and that we are all guilty of what is happening, Mechanimal, without limitation, use a fragmented sound palette to describe ten stories of reality deconstructed. From the death-trap of “Ghetto Level” and the raw industrial resonances of “Easy Dead” and “Scavengers” and from the pagan techno of “Razor Tube” and “Vanquish” to the feverish post-punk of “Red Mirror”, Mechanimal want, not only to escape the inherent limitations of each genre, but also to break down the barriers that do not allow all genres to become one.
“Crux” recording sessions began in January 2019 and ended in August at the band’s own studio. This album hosts guest musicians: Jimmy Polioudis (guitars on “Sharon” and “Easy Dead”), Henrik Meierkord (cello on “Scavengers” and “La Poverina Delle Ossa”), Vasiliki Mazaraki (violin on “Scavengers” and “La Poverina Delle Ossa”) and George Theofanidis (guitars in “Red Mirror”).
Mechanimal is an industrial audio-visual unit hailing from Athens, Greece, founded in 2011 by songwriter and music producer Giannis Papaioannou, who is the sole responsible for the direction of the band.
Mechanimal’s musical language draws influences from a wide range of genres, and features male (and female) vocals against a backdrop of mechanical repetitive beats, shoegaze guitar drones and pulsating synth sequencers.
Their eponymous debut was released in 2012 by Inner Ear featuring Freddie Faulkenberry on vocals and Tassos Nikogiannis on guitars. On stage, Mechanimal employed video elements created by Angelica Vrettou.
Secret Science, their second album, was released in 2014 by Inner Ear. The line up for their third album, symbolically titled by the acronym “Delta Pi Delta”, consisted of Eleni Tzavara on vocals along with both past guitarists and released by Inner Ear in January 2016.
With the “White Flag Single”, which prepares the release of their fourth album, Mechanimal are closing the cycle of their revealing journey with the sole purpose of starting everything from scratch.
The theatrical vocals of Freddie F. meet the guitar distortion of guests (Jimmy Polioudis on “Easy Dead” and George Theofanidis on “Red Mirror”), at the point where shoegazing breaks the motorik, drone ‘n’ roll, which Mechanimal have defined in each of their short or long stories, over a decade, that if had they not existed, would seek them out as it’s most sophisticated soundtrack.
Mechanimal:
Freddie Faulkenberry: Vocals
Giannis Papaioannou: Electronics & production
Antonis Charalambidis: Drums on stage
Angelica Vrettou: Album cover & art direction
https://innerear-mechanimal.bandcamp.com
Out on LP, CD and digital album via Inner Ear
